I finished up Carol Berg's The Soul Mirror last night. It's the second book in her Collegia Magica series. I still have a lot of her back catalogue to try out, but based on what I've read so far, I may have a new author to go on the favorites list. The CM series, at its heart, are investigative thrillers, I suppose. They're told from a 1st person perspective (each book a different POV so far). It was interesting seeing the main character from book one through another character's eyes this time around.
This book continues and expands the greater mystery present in the first book (which almost everyone thought had been solved). While doing that, it further expands on the nature of both the world and the netherworld where people go when they die.
Some of the characters here are really fabulous, conflicted, dual beings. The next book in this series is due sometime next year, and it's a definite must-buy for me.
Nickee/suicul: You two were talking about the closure here and where they can go. There are still a lot of questions about Ixtador on the table and the apprentice did slip off with the nireals. I think a third book with Dante as POV character could be really interesting, particularly with his new condition (though I expect that'll be at least partially resolved before long). But I agree that so many loose ends were tied up with this one that it seems like a very good stopping point. Maybe that's a question for an interview somewhere along the line....
